Thread rolling machine



Dec. 22, 1936. R. J.' FRETER Er Al. '2,055-066 THREAD ROLLING MACHINEFiled April 4, -1936 Sheets-Sheet 1 Bec, 22,1936 R. J. FETR ET Al.2,055,066

' THREAD ROLLING MACHINE Filed April 4, '1936 Sheets-Sheet 2 iM 10 I 7d- 24- i En i f l s Patented Dec. 22, 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICETHREAD ROLLING MACHINE Connecticut Application Api-11 4, 1936, sei-m No.12,756

9 Claims.

. a fixed concave die and a continuously rotating convex die.

The object of the invention is to provide a machine of this type throughwhich the blanks will travel in such direction and will be acted upon insuch a'manner that operative speed of the machine may be accelerated andthus the output increased above that of the prior thread rollingmachines.

This object is attained by so designing and relating thecooperatingblank feeding and thread 'rolling mechanisms that the blanks will traveldown an inclined track and be fed to and between the fixed die androtating threading die and be operated upon by the dies without changein the parallelism of their longitudinal axes, which is accomplished byinclining the dies to substan-l tially the same `degree as theinclination of the feed track, so that the travel of the blank will becontinuously downward on the same incline to the vertical fromv the timethe blanks are deposited in the track to the point where they aredischarged fully threaded.

In the accompanying drawings Fig. 1 shows a side Aelevation of themachine with parts'of the frame cut in section to expose the interiorconstruction. Fig. V2 isl a View looking at the feeding and threadingmechanism in the direction indicated by the arrow 2 adjacent to Fig. 1.Fig. -3 is a. plan on larger scale of the monitor which lets but oneblank at. a time down the feed track. Fig. 4 is a sectional elevation ofthe parts shown in Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a plan view of'the gate forlocating a blank at the lower end of the track and the pusher for en- 40tering the blank between the dies. Flg. 6 is an elevation of the partsshown in Fig. 5. Fig. I shows in elevation the levers which:1o-operatively connect the monito gate and pusher.

The unthreaded blanks -are thrown in a promiscuous mass into a hopperfrom which they are transferred to an inclined track. Any common type ofhopper may be used, that shown having walls 8 supporting elevator arms9, which are rotated by suitable chain connections I6 50 driven from thepulley shaft Il, for picking up and depositing the blanksin the upperend of the inclined track I2, Fig. 1. Y The blanks slide i'n `successionhanging by their heads vdown the track until they are arrestedby themonitor. The monitor shown has a detaining pin I3 and a separating pinIl. These pins project from laterally movable slides I5 and I6 which arealternately reciprocated in a bracket I1 that is bolted to the machineframe, Fig. 3. Projecting downward from the slide I5 is a pin I8 that 5is engaged by a forked end of a rocker I9 and projecting downward fromthe slide I6 is a pin 20 that is engaged by a forked end of the rockerI9, which turns on the stud 2I, Fig. 4. The slide I5 is normally drawnback by a spring 22 10 and is pushed forward by a screw 23 that iscarried by a lever 24. This lever has a forked end that is engaged by astud 25 which extends upward from a lever 26 that is fastened to arocker shaft 21 which has an arm, 28-with a 15 roll 29 that is held inengagement with the periphery of the cam 3l! on the cam shaft 3I by thetension of the spring 32. By the action of this mechanism the pin I3 atthe proper time is withdrawn and allows the lowest of the blanks 20detained by the pin to continue down the track. As the detaining pin I3is withdrawn the rocker causes the separating pin Il to be advanced soas to hold the remaining blanks in the track until such time as thedetaining pin is advanced, then 25 the separating pin is withdrawn.

The cam shaft is supported on an incline with its axis substantially 90degrees from the incline of the feed track, by a long bushing 33 fixedin the frame and a shorter bushing 34 held by a 30 bracket 35 attachedto the frame, and is connected by a coupling 3B with a shaft 31 'that iscontinuously driven from the pulley or motor shaft Ii through areduction gearing 38, mounted in the frame.

On the end of the cam shaft is a sleeve 39 and the rotatory die I0 isclamped on the shaft between the sleeve and a. collar 4I on'tlie shaft,Fig. 1. The fixed die I2 is adjustably fastened to the frame adjacent tothe lower end of the 40 track, Figs. 2, 5. The rotatory die shown hastwo peripheral convex threading segments 43 so that in each cycle twoblanks will be threaded, and the cam 30, which is adjustably fastened bybolts ll to the collar 45 xed to the cam shaft, 45

Fig. 1, has two low sections I6 in order that two blanks will be allowedto feed during each cycle. There may be as few or as many threadingsections on the rotatory die as is desirable and of course to co-operatetherewith there will be a corresponding number of low sections on thecam which actuates the feed mechanism.

SlidabLy retained between the end of the fixed die and the lowerend ofthe track is a gate 41 that normally closes the entrance end of the thegate 41 to be moved up the track and the vtating die, in the sameinclined plane.

opening between the fixed and rotatory dies. Engaged with this gate isthe end of anl arm 48 that projects from the lower end of a spindle 49to the upper end of which is attached an arm 50, Figs. 3, 4. The tensionof a spring 5| tends, through these arms and spindle, to keep the gatein closed position so that a blank cannot pass into the opening betweenthe dies. A pin 52 extending upward from a curved slide 53, at thecorrect time, engages the arm 50 and so pushes it that the gate will bemoved up the track and open the entrance to dies and permit the feedingof a blank between the dies.

The slide 53 is movable in a curved way 54 in the frame and fastened toit is an arc-shaped pusher plate 55, that curves about the rotatory die,Figs. 5, 6. An end of the slide 53 is forked and pivotally connectedwith a block 56 that is movable in a forked end of an arm 51 which ispivoted on the rocker shaft 21 and is adjustably fastened, by bolt 58,to an arm 59 that is fastened to the rocker shaft, Figs. 5, 7. When alow section of the cam 30 passes under the roller 29 vand allows theshaft to be rocked by the lever 26 and spring 32 the pusher slide 53 ismoved and through the means described causes pusher plate 55 to thrust ablank from the lower end of the track into the opening between the dies,the gate, of course, moving out of the path' of the blank slightly inadvance of the pusher. As the blanks reach the end of the xed die theydrop through an opening 60 into a pan 6l.

In this machinethe axis of the cam shaft be'- ing inclined atsubstantially 90 with relation to the incline of the track, the blanksslide down the track, are fed directly to` the dies and are carriedbetween the dies by the continuously ro- This allows the machine to' berun very rapidly. The rotating dieand the single cam which controls theactions of the interconnected monitor, gate' and pusher mechanisms,being on the same shaft the active members co-operate to perform theirrespective functions accurately and synchronously, which ensuresprecision work notwithstanding the machine is operated at'high speed.The cam shaft is not only supported for a considerable distance alongits length, but is also supported beyond the rotatory die by asubstantial bearing so that the thrust caused by the rolling of a blankbetween the dies is sustained without yielding or side wear of theshaft. The dies are adjustable to ensure their exact cooperation, anddies for different sizes of blanks and characters of thread may bereadily substituted.

The invention has been illustrated and described herein as embodied in amachine constructed for rolling screw threads, which is the.

primary object of the invention, however, it is obvious, and is withinthe scope of the invention, that the machine can be utilized forknurling, planishing, sizing,lserrating, grooving and marking blanks, bysimply substituting the requisite dies. For these operations the.monitor, gate and pusher mechanisms may be disconnected, allowing theblanks to run through the machine in a continuously uninterrupted-mannera`s for these purposes it would be unnecessary to mate the xed androtatory dies. Y

The invention claimed isz- 1. A machine for rolling screw threads whichcomprises a fixed concave die and a co-operating 'continuously rotatingconvex di`e,the axes of said dies being substantially coincident andvertically inclined, a track for leading blanksdirectly to A said gate,monitor and pusher.

2. A machine for rolling screw threads which comprises a fixed concavedie having an inclined operating face, a co-operating continuouslyrotating convex die having an inclined operating face, a verticallyinclined cam shaft carrying the rotating die, the degree of inclinationof said shaft being the same as that of said die faces, an inclinedtrack lfor leading blanks directly to the opening between said dies, amonitor for permitting the blanks to slide bygravity one at a time downthe track, a gate normally obstructing the path of the blanks from thetrack to the dies, a pusher for moving the blanks from the track to thedies, interconnected means for actuating said monitor gate and pusher,and a cam on said cam shaft for actuating said interconnected means.

3. A machine for rolling screw threads which comprises a fixed concavedie, a co-operating continuously rotating convex die for rolling threadson blanks, the arcs of said dies having substantially coincidentvertically inclined axes, and a vertically inclined track down which theblanks feed by gravity hanging by their heads directly to the entranceopening between said dies, the inclination of said track and the facesof the dies being so related that the blanks to be threaded pass downthe track and between thewhich the blanks f eed by gravity hanging bytheir heads directly to the entrance opening between said dies, saidtrack being vertically inclined in a line that is substantially at rightangles to and radial with relation to the axes of the dies.

5. A machine for rolling screw threads which comprises a single xedconcave die, a co-oper-v ating continuously rotating convex die having aplurality of threading segments on its periphery the axes of the arcs ofsaid dies being substantially coincident and horizontally inclined, anda single vertically inclined track down which the blanks feed by gravityhanging by their heads directly to the entrance opening between saiddies, the inclination of 'said track and faces of the dies being sorelated that the blanks to be threaded pass down the track and betweenthe rolling edges of the dies inclined to horizontal.

6. A machine for rolling screw threads which comprises a xed concavedie, a co-operating continuously rotating convex die for rolling threadson blanks, the .arcs of said dies having substantially coincidentvertically inclined axes, a vertically inclined track down which theblanks feed by gravity hanging bytheir heads directly to the entranceopening between said dies, the inclina- 7'5 tion of said track and thefaces of the diesrbeing so related that the blanks to be threaded passdown the track between the rolling edges of said dies in substantiallythe same inclined plane, a

gate at the lower end of the track normally obstructing the path to theopening between 'the dies, a cam rotatable with the rotating die andmeans actuated by said cam for moving said gate out of the path of thedies.

7. A machine for rolling screw threads which comprises a fixed concavedie, a co-operating continuously rotating convex die for rolling threadson blanks, the arcs of said dies having substantially coincidentvertically inclined axes, a vertically inclined track down which .theblanks feed by gravity hanging by their heads directly to the entranceopening between said dies, the inclination of said track and the facesof the dies being so related that the blanks to be threaded pass downthe track and between the rolling edges of said dies in substantiallythe same inclined plane, a slidable gate normally obstructing the pathfrom the gate to the opening between the dies, a cam rotatable with therotating die, and means actuated by said cam for sliding said gate upthe track and out of the path to the dies.

8. A machine for rolling metal blanks which comprises a nxed concavedie. a co-operating continuously rotating convex die for rolling threadson blanks, the axes of tbe arcs of said dies being substantiallycoincident and inclined to horizontal, and an inclined track leadingdirectly to the opening between said dies. the inclination of the airesof said dies and track being so related that the blanks to be rolled,hanging by their heads with their axes inclined, pass down the track bygravity and between the dies in substantially the same continuousinclined plane.

9.AA machine for rolling metal blanks which comprises a fixed concavedie and a co-operating continuously rotating convex die for rollingthreads on the blanks, the axes of the arcs of said diesbeingsubstantially coincident and inclined to horizontal, and a trackfor leading blanks to the opening between said dies, said track beingvertically inclined in-a plane that extends substantially at the sameinclination as the faces of the dies, whereby the blanks will pass downthe track and between the working edges of the dies lin the samecontinuous inclined plane with their axes inclined to horizontal. i

ROY J. FRETER. ALBERT H. GAESS.

